On the 2-0 win over Trinidad and Tobago:"Again, we set out what we wanted to do and that was to get three points against a tough Trinidad team. We got a goal in the first half and a goal in the second half. I thought it was a competitive game. I don’t think we were maybe at our sharpest for the 90 minutes. But again we were able to play very well defensively, get a shutout, and get the goals that were necessary. And again good teams are able to win games when maybe it’s not their best night.”

On if the game was more difficult than expected and if the expectations were to score more goals:"I thought Trinidad competed well, put us under pressure. Again it’s a qualifying game and we’ve said from the beginning that you can’t take anybody lightly because everybody can compete and have a good game. Trinidad I thought did well tonight. Like I said, we maybe weren’t at our sharpest, but we still were able to score two goals and we had some other chances that we didn’t capitalize on. But at the end of the day it’s all about getting three points and moving on to the next game.”

On the tournament picture after two games:“Qualifying is always a great competition – every team is going to come and compete. So I think the level has been very good, very competitive. I just saw Honduras play their first game the other night. Honduras is a very good team, but again we’re not really even looking toward Honduras yet. We’re looking toward Guatemala.”

On if he’s thinking that the match against Guatemala could possibly eliminate one of the teams from winning the group:“We’re not really thinking about that. I’m just concentrating on Guatemala and winning the game. We enter every game to win against that opponent. Our focus is on Guatemala and we take one step at a time.”

U-17 MNT midfielder LUCA de la TORRE

On the team’s patience to break down Trinidad and Tobago:"Trinidad and Tobago were pretty athletic and they were good defenders. In a game like that, it’s important to take your time with the ball and speed it up when you need to, but also don’t get too impatient because they can go on the counter as well.

“We probably started the game a little bit slower than we would have liked. But as time went on we got a bit more into it and more confident.”

On the two goals:“I think they were two good pieces of quality – the free kick from Joe (Gallardo) and Christian (Pulisic) finding Haji (Wright) and a great finish from Haji.

U-17 MNT forward HAJI WRIGHT

On how his goal came about:"First, Christian (Pulisic) got the ball and took a great touch, and passed it to me. My first touch was alright, but my second touch was really good. I beat the first defender and after that I knew I was going to be in on goal. Then I took one more prep touch and just fired it.”

On the game in general:“It was a hard game. We had to battle for 90 minutes. It was a very hard game to win.”

On the team’s play defensively:“The defense was really good today. Our center backs played great. [Trinidad] had a big forward and they contained him pretty well today. And even when they subbed him off and we dealt with his replacement well, too.”

U.S. U-17 MNT defender HUGO ARELLANO

On the defense being called on more so than the first match:"It started off pretty slow for us. We had to pick up the pace and obviously compete against them. That really brought up the tempo of the game and it pushed us. We came out with the shutout and that’s what we try to play for, defensively.

On how the defense orchestrated the shutout:“Communication is a big factor, especially in backline. Me and Tanner (Dieterich) were able to do our part in the center, and Johnny (Nelson) and Matt (Olosunde) covered us out wide. And having Will (Pulisci) back there, we knew we were supported.”

SAN PEDRO SULA, Honduras (March 2, 2015) – The U.S. Under-17 Men’s National Team scored a goal in each half to defeat Trinidad & Tobago 2-0 in Group A play at the 2015 CONCACAF U-17 Championship at Estadio Francisco Morazán.

Joe Gallardo scored his tournament-leading fourth goal from of a free kick in the 31st minute and Haji Wright tallied his first goal in qualifying in the 71st minute.

The U.S. is atop Group A with a 2-0-0 record and plus-7 goal differential, while Trinidad & Tobago falls to 0-2-0 and a minus-5 goal differential.

Earlier Monday in Group A action, Jamaica defeated Guatemala 2-1. Guatemala falls to 1-1-0 with a plus-2 goal differential and Jamaica improves to 1-1-0 with a minus-1 goal differential. Cuba (0-1-0, minus-5) and Honduras (1-0-0, plus-2) face each other in Monday night’s last Group A game.

Goal Scoring Rundown:USA – Joe Gallardo, 31st minute: Gallardo drew a foul just above the box, and the USA forward took the subsequent free kick with confidence. Gallardo shot low to the right of Trinidad & Tobago’s seven-man wall and past diving goalkeeper Levi Fernandez, into the right of the frame for the lead. USA 1, TRI 0

USA – Haji Wright (Christian Pulisic), 71st minute: Pulisic played a long ball from midfield to Wright down the left side. Wright had a couple steps on Trinidad & Tobago defender Tekay Hoyce and shot left-footed to the inside of the far right post, past Levi Fernandez, for the two-goal lead. Wright now has 27 goals in 31 games during his U-17 MNT tenure. USA 2, TRI 0 (FINAL)

Key Saves and Defensive Stops:TRI – Noah Powder and Tekay Hoyce, 9th minute: The USA had back-to-back scoring chances shortly after a set piece. After Christian Pulisic’s corner kick from the left side bounced through traffic, Alejandro Zendejas crossed the ball back in from the right. Haji Wright headed it toward the left side of the frame and Powder made a key goal line clearance. Joe Gallardo kept things alive with a shot at the near left post and Hoyce deflected it out for a USA corner kick.

USA – Hugo Arellano, 35th minute: Trinidad & Tobago did not create too many clear-cut chances, but a lofted cross by Kareem Riley caused some concern for the USA. Goalkeeper Will Pulisic was unable to cleanly deflect the ball away, but his center back and team captain was up to the task with the clearance near the six-yard box.

TRI – Levi Fernandez, 49th minute: USA right back Matthew Olosunde was effective when he pushed up, and provided a dangerous cross in the middle of the box. Fernandez read it well and made a diving punch for the clearance with U.S. attackers lurking.

USA – Will Pulisic, 87th minute: Pulisic had yet to face a shot on goal, but he was tested twice in succession down the stretch and came up big on both occasions. Kerron Mason ripped a right-footed shot from well outside the box and Pulisic dove to his left for the save. The rebound popped out to Noah Powder from seven yards out at the near right post, and Pulisic again thwarted the Trinidad & Tobago offense with a well-positioned save.

Next on the Schedule:The U-17 MNT resumes Group A play against Guatemala at 6 p.m. ET on Thursday, March 5, at Estadio Francisco Morazán in San Pedro Sula.Broadcast information: FOX Sports 2, FOX Sports GO, Univision DeportesSocial: Twitter (@ussoccer_ynt; @ussoccer_esp)

Additional Notes:

The U-17 MNT is now 5-1-0 in international play this year.

The USA moved to 5-1-3 all-time against Trinidad & Tobago in this tournament’s history.

Head coach Richie Williams’ starting lineup featured three changes from the USA’s 5-0 victory against Cuba on Friday.

Goalkeeper Will Pulisic returned in net, and three of the four defenders also started in their second straight match: left back John Nelson, right back Matthew Olosunde and center back and team captain Hugo Arellano. Tanner Dieterich earned his first start of qualifying as the other center back.

The midfield of the 4-3-3 formation included another start for Christian Pulisic in an attacking role, while Luca de la Torre and Tommy McCabe garnered their first starts in the tournament. It marked McCabe’s first appearance in the CONCACAF U-17 Championship.

The front line featured returning starters Haji Wright on the right and Joe Gallardo in the middle. Alejandro Zendejas, who started in the midfield against Cuba, was pushed up to forward on the left side.

Christian Pulisic and Wright lead the team with 31 international caps in this cycle dating back to 2013.

The USA made its first sub in the 64th minute when McKinze Gaines replaced de la Torre. Gaines leads the USA with appearances in all six international games in 2015.

Tyler Adams made his second straight appearance off the bench, replacing Christian Pulisic in the 83rd minute.

In the first minute of second-half stoppage time, Richie Williams utilized his final substitution with Brandon Vazquez entering for Gallardo. It was Vazquez’s first appearance of the tournament.

Trinidad & Tobago played without Shirwin Noel, who served a one-game suspension after receiving a red card in the 39th minute of the team’s opening 4-1 loss to Guatemala on Feb. 27.

The U.S. Under-17 Men’s National Team resumes Group A play at the 2015 CONCACAF U-17 Championship when it faces Trinidad & Tobago at 6 p.m. ET on
Monday, March 2, at Estadio Francisco Morazán in San Pedro Sula, Honduras. The game is live on FOX Sports 2 and Univision Deportes, and fans can follow on
Twitter @ussoccer_ynt and @ussoccer_esp.

The USA took hold of first place in the group with a resounding 5-0 victory against Cuba on Feb. 27. Joe Gallardo
led the way with three goals, while Hugo Arellano and Alejandro Zendejas each contributed a goal. The U-17 MNT’s plus-5 goal differential puts the team
ahead of Guatemala (1-0-0, plus-3 goal differential) and host Honduras (1-0-0, plus-2 goal differential).

Trinidad & Tobago dropped its group opener 4-1 go Guatemala on Feb. 27. Keston Julien’s 45th-minute goal cut Guatemala’s lead to 2-1, but Guatemala responded in
first-half stoppage time and padded its lead early in the second half.

Here is breakdown of the USA’s history against Trinidad & Tobago in this tournament:

The USA has faced Trinidad & Tobago eight previous times in this tournament, which ties for the most games (along with Honduras) against the Group A
opponents. The U.S. is 4-1-3 all-time.

The first two meetings came at the 1983 CONCACAF U-16 Championship. The USA and Trinidad drew 1-1 in the opening round on Aug. 30, and then played to a
scoreless draw through regulation in the title match on Sept. 3. The U.S. won the tournament title 5-3 in penalties.

The U.S. earned a 4-0 win to open the preliminary round of the 1987 CONCACAF U-16 Championship on Feb. 15.

At the 1988 CONCACAF U-16 Championship, the USA lost 1-0 to Trinidad on Nov. 20 to cap off the group stage, but made up for that result with a 1-0 U.S.
win on Nov. 27 in the tournament’s final round in Port of Spain, Trinidad.

At the 1991 CONCACAF U-16 Championship, the USA and Trinidad & Tobago drew 1-1 in the final round on March 31.

The USA’s top offensive performance against Trinidad was at the 1994 CONCACAF U-16 Championship with a 5-3 victory on Nov. 5 in the group stage.

The last time the U.S. and Trinidad & Tobago faced each other was at the 2007 CONCACAF U-17 Tournament, where the USA garnered a 3-0 victory on
April 30. Alex Nimo scored twice, with Brek Shea assisting his second goal. Ellis McLoughlin contributed the other U.S. tally off of a Sheanon Williams
assist.

U-17 MNT head coach RICHIE WILLIAMSOn the 5-0 victory to begin the Under-17 Championship:"It was a good start for the team. Obviously it was important to come in and start off on the right foot, get three points and score some goals. So I thought it was a solid showing today against a Cuba team that is difficult and makes it hard on you, and I thought at times were physical and defended well. So it was difficult at times but I thought the guys did a great job.”

On being considered a favorite to win the Championship:"You’re always happy with a win, no matter what. The objective is to go out and win. Again, we want to take one game at a time. Trinidad is next and we have to focus on Trinidad, who’s going to be a good opponent. Again we take one game at a time. We have to get the results, play well, and then hopefully we’ll continue that one game after another and into the final on the last day of the tournament.”

On how the team dealt with the climate:“We were fine. We train full time in Florida so we also have a lot of heat in Florida - we trained the last year and half in Florida. We felt fine. The guys came through the game with no issues. We have a strong squad of 20 players that we trust that will be able to come in and play for us at certain times and do well for us if need be.”

On the play of Joe Gallardoin his first major competition after coming back from a broken leg in August 2014:“It’s great to see Joe back from his injury. Joe’s a good goal scorer – he was proving it up until his injury. Now he’s back, and obviously got three goals tonight. He worked extremely hard, he played well and he was rewarded with his three goals. I believe that he’ll continue to do that throughout the tournament. Again it’s great for him to be able to recover from the injury and to be back with this team.”

On if he expects the coming games will be more difficult:“Anybody in international soccer can beat anybody. So we’re not going to relax and take any team for granted. We respect all the teams; they’re all competitive and we don’t feel that there’s going to be any easy game. We have to show up and make sure that we play well offensively and defensively and have good team outings.”

U.S. U-17 MNT midfielder CHRISTIAN PULISICOn starting the tournament with a 5-0 victory:"It was great. We played really hard right from the start and got that early goal, which really helped us. After that we didn’t hold back. All the guys did their job and played really well. We kept a clean sheet and we’re all happy and looking forward to the next game.”

On turning corner kick drills into an early goal:“It’s awesome. To practice that with Richie showing us the plays we’d like to do, and just being able to execute is really important. So it was really good to get that first goal like that.”

On having two goals called back early on:“We weren’t worried. Things like that happen. We just had to keep pushing and we knew they’d (goals) come.”

U.S. U-17 MNT midfielder ALEJANDRO ZENDEJAS

On starting the tournament off with a convincing win:"It’s definitely exciting. Of course we still want to look at the good things we did and the things we can do better. But I think we’re all very happy to start off with a win. And now we’re just ready for the next game.”

On getting an early goal and being able to add to the lead:“It was great, but we knew we still had to keep our composure and keep playing, keep scoring. And obviously we were able to do that.”

On how his goal came about:“Josh (Perez) sent a ball from the left side and Haji (Wright) tried to play it back. It was kind of bouncing around. Joe (Gallardo) laid it off and I just hit it first time. We’ve practiced finishing a lot, and it paid off, so I’m happy.”

U.S. U-17 MNT forward JOE GALLARDOOn scoring three goals in the win to start the tournament:"I’m happy I got the hat trick, but more happy that we got the win as team. We played really well and I’m just happy for the victory today.”

On how he scored the first goal:
“As coach always tells me, run to the first post, and that’s what I did. I saw a clear path for Christian, he got it across and I was able to tap it in.”

On returning to the form he had prior to his injury:“I’m just happy that I’m back to how I used to play. I’m thankful to God that he gave me the strength and perfect mindset to come back and play really well.”

SAN PEDRO SULA, Honduras (Feb. 27, 2015) – The U.S. Under-17 Men’s National Team got off to a strong start at the 2015 CONCACAF U-17 Championship, earning a 5-0 victory against Cuba in the Group A opener at Estadio Francisco Morazán.

Joe Gallardo scored three goals, Hugo Arellano and Alejandro Zendejas tallied in the first half, while Christian Pulisic and Luca de la Torre each provided two assists to lead the way for the USA.

With the victory, the U-17 MNT has now won seven straight group openers at this qualifying event, starting with the 2001 edition of the tournament.

It was a dominant performance by the USA, which had ample chances to pad the lead in both halves. Gallardo struck the right post in the 20th minute and Haji Wright had a wide-open scoring opportunity but hit the left of the frame in the 50th minute.

In Friday’s earlier Group A match, Guatemala defeated Trinidad & Tobago 4-1. Jamaica and Honduras kicked off their group opener following USA-Cuba.

Goal Scoring Rundown:USA – Hugo Arellano (Christian Pulisic), 5th minute: Pulisic, who had threatened the net just one minute earlier to earn the corner kick, took the set piece opportunity from the left side, whipping the ball into the box to Arellano. The team captain rose over three Cuba defenders and headed it into the right side of the frame for the early lead. It was Arellano’s first goal of the year and second during his U-17 MNT tenure. USA 1, CUB 0

USA – Joe Gallardo (Christian Pulisic), 40th minute: Pulisic and Alejandro Zendejas played a swift give-and-go down the right side and Pulisic crossed from the edge of the six-yard box. Gallardo tapped it home with ease for his second goal of the year and 11th of his U-17 MNT career. USA 2, CUB 0

USA – Alejandro Zendejas, 43rd minute: Just before halftime, the USA worked the ball in from the left and Cuba’s Felipe Hurtado attempted a header clearance. Zendejas was there to settle the ball and ripped a long distance shot into the left of the frame to push the lead to three goals. Zendejas tallied his first international goal of 2015 and fourth during his U-17 career. USA 3, CUB 0

USA – Joe Gallardo (Luca de la Torre), 65th minute: Just seconds after entering the match, de la Torre took two quick touches in the box and set up Gallardo from 20 yards out. Gallardo fired toward the left of the frame, his shot bouncing once in the six-yard box, slightly deflected by Cuba goalkeeper Jesus Enrique Hernandez and finding its way into the back of the net. USA 4, CUB 0

USA – Joe Gallardo (Luca de la Torre), 88th minute: The USA wrapped up its scoring when de la Torre played a through ball to Gallardo at close range. Gallardo’s shot was stopped briefly by Jesus Enrique Hernandez, but bounced right back to Gallardo who capitalized on the second chance and found the left side of the frame for the hat trick. He now leads the U-17s this year with four goals this year and has 14 career goals. USA 5, CUB 0 (FINAL)

Key Saves and Defensive Stops:CUB – Jesus Enrique Hernandez, 10th and 13th minutes: The Honduras goalkeeper was challenged early and often, required to limit the damage on a couple occasions. In the 10th minute, Hernandez lunched to his right for a diving save on Josh Perez’s strike. Hernandez allowed a rebound, but Christian Pulisic was offside. Then in the 13th minute, Hernandez again dove to his right to smother another Perez shot.

USA – Will Pulisic, 23rd minute: Cuba’s Eduard Puga drove a free kick into the box that Alejandro Zendejas headed away. But Cuba continued to threaten in the area and had a chance to attack the net again from the left side of the box with much of the back line pushed up. Pulisic alertly darted off of his line and snared the ball at the edge of the box.

CUB – Jesus Enrique Hernandez, 62nd minute: U.S. forward Joe Gallardo found a window to shoot from 21 yards out. Hernandez once again made a diving save to his right, making up for a Cuba back line that allowed plenty of space for the USA to work the ball in.

Next on the Schedule:The U-17 MNT resumes Group A play against Trinidad & Tobago at 6 p.m. ET on Monday, March 2, at Estadio Francisco Morazán in San Pedro Sula.Broadcast information: FOX Sports 2, Univision DeportesSocial: Twitter (@ussoccer_ynt; @ussoccer_esp)

Additional Notes:

The U-17 MNT is now 4-1-0 in international play this year.

The USA moved to 6-0-2 all-time against Cuba in this tournament’s history.

Head coach Richie Williams’ starting lineup featured a 4-3-3 formation, with Will Pulisic in net and a defensive line that included John Nelson at left back, Matthew Olosunde at right back and a center back duo of team captain Hugo Arellano and Alexis Velela.

The midfield trio comprised of Alejandro Zendejas, Eric Calvillo and Christian Pulisic in an attacking role.

The front line featured Josh Perez on the left, Haji Wright on the right and Joe Gallardo in the middle.

Christian Pulisic and Wright earned their 30th international caps in this age group, tying for the most by any player in this cycle.

Every starter – other than Gallardo who was injured for much of 2014 with a leg injury – has earned 19 or more caps in this age group.

The USA was forced to burn an early substitution in the 28th minute when Tyler Adams entered for Calvillo, who suffered a lower leg injury.

Midfielder Luca de la Torre made his first appearance of the year when he entered for Zendejas in the 64th minute.

In the 84th minute, McKinze Gaines entered the game for Wright. Gaines is the only USA player to appear in all five international matches this year.

U.S. Under-17 Men's National Team head coach Richie Williams and captain Hugo Arellano talk about prepping for the 2015 CONCACAF U-17 Championship ahead of the opening match against Cuba on Friday in Honduras.